Augusta, GA., home of perhaps the greatest professional golf tournament on the planet...

I know, the purists will claim since the game was invented across the big pond, the British Open is the Mother of all the majors. But if you've ever walked the historic, legendary track, inside the ropes or out, you might beg to differ!

The property reeks of tradition, dripping from the ancient oaks and pines, with azaleas surrounding their majestic trunks. Formerly a nursery until discovered by the great Bobby Jones , Augusta is a thing of beauty, even if you're not a golfer!

Words won't and can't do it justice, they say you have to see it to believe it. The T.V. coverage is as exceptional as is the service for those that attend, player or fan. Rich in Southern hospitality, the staff at Augusta National has maintained something often lost in todays digital world, customer service. From the pimento cheese sandwiches to the mandatory "uniforms", its a walk back in time to when manners mattered...

The 2017 field was rocked with World #1 Dustin Johnson hurt his back the night before the Masters tournament. His slip and fall was horrible for the player, but golf fans were not disappointed as the competition continued to escalate through "moving day". I write this minutes prior to the final groups begin to approach #1 tee, "Tea Olive" it's called as every hole is appropriately named, for it's flowering vegetation.

Veteran Freddy Couples not only made the cut at 57, but showing that modern bombs away golf is not only for the "flat bellies". Lefty Phil Mickelson at 46 was in the hunt for the first two days until his putter turned on him late on Saturday. Personally, I'm pulling for Sergio Garcia to win his first major, but would also love to see Justin Rose if "El Nino" loses his touch on the greens...

So we here at Otey Golf wish the best for the entire field, and that they all "play well". Those of us in the gallery will certainly be entertained by what I believe to be the "greatest show on grass", and cant wait to see who looks good wearing green!

The Vintage Otey Crisman Mallet Style Putter I used seemed to eliminate pulls, pushes, and any thought of the yips. I did not realize how comfortable and easy it was to stroke a hickory shafted putter. It was like butta' ...

The first I had ever heard of Otey Crisman was while visiting a friend in Florida for a few days. Mid February "2013" and an opportunity to thaw out, you bet I was going. The plan was to borrow a set of clubs while I visited and that is exactly what I did. The thing I wasn't aware of though, is that I would also be introduced to the name of Otey Crisman and a No.18 Super Deluxe Hickory Shafted Putter manufactured some 50-60 years ago.

No, no one was trying to play a joke on me. I had other putter choices, but for kicks, I thought I would try out this vintage mallet style putter and then the magic began. I'm not going to pretend I was putting as well as Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus or Ben Crenshaw, statistically, the three greatest putters to ever play the game, but I had a personal putting streak that was as good as I can ever remember.

After three days of multiple six to fifteen footers for one putt, (*Note - I hadn't played in two months) I even managed my first (and only) birdie of the trip - sinking an ominous, right to left, twenty foot, side hill downhill putt to win the hole. The rest of my game was more or less typical, but the Otey Crisman was so much fun to putt with that my bogey handicap felt like scratch.

We get a winter season where I live and it will be another month before I get to hit my clubs again and I'll be ready. As soon as I got back from the trip, I went online to eBay and found a Vintage Otey Crisman putter I could call my own.

Question:

Where do I find an Otey Crisman Putter?

Answer: The handmade Otey Crisman Putters are still manufactured in limited quantities at their factory in Selma, Alabama. The company which is still in the Crisman family is currently managed by Otey's son; Otey Crisman III.

Who Is Otey Crisman

Answer: Otey Crisman was a golfer and a golf club maker, specializing in putters and wedges, who saw his heyday as a golfer in the 1940s.

In the summer of 1946 when Otey Crisman, Jr., a touring professional golfer from Selma, Alabama, was preparing for the US Open qualifier which was to be held that year in Birmingham, Alabama. He was scoring poorly with a blade putter commonly used at the time but had an idea for a mallet style putter...

The story goes on tell us how Otey handcrafted a model of his own putter design from wood and had a local forge cast one for him. He qualified fourth for the U.S. open that year. The twist was that his mallet style putter was soon to be one of the most popular putters on the tour, eventually winning 5 Masters.